Vietnamreporters War

There are countless books on the Viet Nam war - some cover individual battles, many are reminiscences of enlisted men and junior officers, and there is the self-serving fiction of many senior officers. There are also accounts by journalists who never fired a shot and were responsible for no military decision. But they were present and necessarily are excellent writers. Hugh Lunn has an additional qualification - he is an Australian journalist and had no ax to grind. Much of his chronicle occurs in and near the Reuters office in Saigon. He interacts with many people, some very important and others whose individual efforts have little effect on the war's outcome. He attempts to reach the field and witness the most strenuous fighting. He succeeds often enough to encounter a reality at odds with that of the American high command. This presents the challenge of dancing his way around censorship to present his version of the truth. What makes this book outstanding are the observations of an outsider about how Americans made war; even details of the PX are scrutinized. Lunn's take is fascinating, refreshing, and unique. Fortunately Lunn was in country for the Tet Offensive. His return to Australia shortly thereafter destined that offensive to be the crescendo of the book as it was of the war.